‘Her outrageous comments cannot be allowed to slide under the crack.’
‘She has apparently apologised to Samantha.’
‘What about my family? Not a word of apology to me and to my family!’

Photograph: Kind courtesy Nagarjuna/X

Telangana Minister Konda Surekha made shockingly distasteful remarks about Naga Chaitanya and Samantha’s divorce and it drew sharp responses from the couple, Naga Chaitanya’s family as well as members of the Telugu film industry.

Surekha has since withdraw her remarks, but not before getting sued by Nagarjuna.

Nagarjuna tells Subhash K Jha, “We have filed a criminal defamation case yesterday. We are in the process of filing another Rs 100 crore defamation lawsuit against her. This culture of politicians using celebrity names to get attention must stop. The entire Telugu industry has come forward in support of me and my family, to stop this slanderous trend of using our names to get votes.”

Nag, if you see the video, her nonsense doesn’t even match timelines.

That’s right. Her outrageous comments cannot be allowed to slide under the crack.

She now says she is withdrawing her remarks. She has apparently apologised to Samantha.

What about my family? Not a word of apology to me and to my family!

Are you insinuating that you will withdraw the lawsuit if she apologises to you and your family?

Not at all.

This is no longer personal. The slander has gone far beyond just my family and me.

The support we’ve received from the Telugu industry has made me realise that we are in the process of stemming the rot that has seeped into the core of our system.

You can’t use our names for political gains.

We in the entertainment industry won’t be soft targets anymore.

I hope that our legal action against the lady will caution other politicians from using our names in a slanderous way.

IMAGE: Samantha and Naga Chaitanya at their wedding. Photograph: Kind courtesy Samantha/Instagram

You are aware that legal matters in our country, especially defamation-related cases, take years.

Yes, and I am ready for the fight ahead. That’s why we have filed a criminal defamation case.

We hope for a speedy verdict.

In any case, we will see this to its logical conclusion.

Nag, it hasn’t been an easy year for you so far.

Yes. The problems are piling up one after another.

I thought the last one was the last, but it seems God has other plans.

I’ve always been a strong individual. When it comes to protecting my family, I am a lion.

Fortunately, the entire Telugu industry has come forward to stand by us. I think it’s my father’s goodwill and blessings.

What about your goodwill?

Yeah, I guess that too. I want to thank the media through this interview for standing by us.